Weekly Newsletter: Tuesday Is News Day

Tuesday, February 13, 2024

This week marks our first newsletter correction, which must mean we've hit the big time! Correction: ACC campuses will be closed from 8am-4pm on March 27 for the Data Summit. Our previous newsletter incorrectly stated that campuses would be open, but Vice Chancellor Gaye Lynn Scott sent an email to adjunct faculty on February 7 with the most up-to-date information (we've copied that email under ACC Announcements below). Students were also notified about the March 27th closure last week. Sorry for the confusion!

We've added an updated email from Diane Whitley Grote so you can get your Textbook Voting on!

❤️ Happy early Valentine's Day,  y'all! ♥️

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Deadlines! 

February 16 

Register for paid Hyflex Training (happening Feb 24)

February 19 

Submit Textbook Ballot (Full-timers and Voting Adjuncts)

February 23

Register for CLS Curriculum Conference 

February 29 

Student deadline for Research Symposium 

March 27

Data Summit (Full-time faculty required; adjunct faculty and staff encouraged)

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CLS Announcements

CLS Curriculum Conference, Register to attend by Feb 23

When you were filling out your Faculty Reflection Form in January, perhaps you realized that you were short on Professional Development hours. Or, maybe you just need a little pedagogical inspiration. If so, sign up to attend the inaugural CLS Curriculum Conference (CCC). Earn some PD, engage in sparkling conversation with your colleagues, and dig into relevant topics like Grading, AI, Critical Reading, Tutoring, Instructional Design, and Engagement. (Plus, there will be cookies!)  

When: Friday, March 1, 2024    12p - 4pm 

Where: Highland Campus with Hyflex options

Explore session details at the CLS Curriculum Conference Website

And register to attend by February 23 CLS Curriculum Conference Registration 

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Textbook Ballot, Vote by Feb 19

Thanks to everyone for participating in the 1301 textbook nominating process.  It is now time to vote!  The list of nominations (old and new) has been compiled into a voting ballot, which is linked below. The newly nominated book is noted. Also, two textbooks on our approved list were nominated, so I did not note them. 
 

To ensure your vote is accounted for, please follow the process outlined below or your vote may be discarded:

1. Open the voting ballot Google Form.

2. Identify your selections by clicking on the radial buttons located next to each textbook.

3. You may vote for FOUR textbooks only for your ballot to be valid.    

4. Your responses will automatically be recorded.

5. You must use your ACC email address to vote.

6. Your email ballot submission must be be received by the end of the day, Monday, February 19.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Thank You!

Diane Grote

Textbook and Technology Committee Chair

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Dual Credit Instructors and Weighted Grades for Students

Please consider adding a Weighted Averages column to your Blackboard grade book this semester. This will enable our high school partners to quickly determine the percent of your students' grades so they can be used by the school districts for high school class rank and GPA. (Some of you who teach at AISD may already be familiar with the process.) This is will be massively helpful to the school districts; it will make us very popular and competitive with other programs. And, it's easy enough to do! At some point, I hope, that column should magically appear on Blackboard--but until then:

Open Full Grade Center

At the top, Click Create Weighted Column

Name the column HS GPA 

Select Total from the column on the left and move to the right

Choose 100%

Click Done

If you are having trouble, let me know! The Instructional Designers can be helpful, or we can find a time to demo this for everyone. Thanks!

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Please Promote: The ACC Scholarship Society

Newly-formed student organization, The Scholarship Society (TSS) holds weekly meetings that help students get organized for a scholarship search while gaining applicable skills and experiences to strengthen applications, resumes, and professional online presence. At TSS gatherings, students will be welcomed by a supportive team who knows and encourages students’ scholarship goals. Each meeting is followed by a casual one-hour coworking session--like an application study group--where students can drop by and get into a workflow with peers who share similar ambitions. 

Meetings are held at a different ACC Campus each week to provide access for students across the ACC service area. Check the TSS website for scheduled meetings, contact information, social media links, and a list of campuses where TSS still needs officers/campus representatives. Students interested in serving as a TSS officer may use this form to indicate their interest. 

The first TSS meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, February 13, from 4:00-5:30 p.m. at RGC in room 1114. 

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Please Promote: Student Research Symposium, Deadline Feb 29

The Liberal Arts Gateway is sponsoring a Student Research Symposium that "provides a platform for students from diverse disciplines to present their research projects, fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange."  Research projects from all ACC courses will be considered. 

Submission Deadline: February 29 

Event details: Friday, April 29th,  11-1:30pm, Highland Campus 

Check out the Symposium Website for more details. 

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Please Promote: Sigma Kappa Delta 

Please share this message with your students:

Join Sigma Kappa Delta

We’re seeking students with an interest in Creative or Technical Writing, English, Literature, or other areas tangentially related to the English discipline to join Sigma Kappa Delta, the English Honor Society for Two-Year Colleges. Dual Credit students, ECHS students, High School grads attending ACC, and faculty/staff can join, and you do not have to major or plan to major in English to do so.

Reqs to Join:

• Completed 1 college-level English course with at least a B

• Overall GPA of at least 3.0

• Earned at least 12 college hours

• Pay the one-time member fee of $30

Benefits to joining include: 

• Career advancement opportunities 

• Chance to attend the annual Convention

• Meeting fellow students and faculty with interests in reading, writing, and literacy 

• Potential to publish in SKD's creative journal

• Scholarship opportunities

We're also seeking our first set of officers to help Sigma Kappa Delta become an ACC Registered Student Organization.

For more information about SKD, click here or email skdatacc@gmail.com

If you're interested in joining, please fill out this form.

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Please Promote: Elite University Transfer Panel and Dinner, Feb 13

Please share this Transfer Week opportunity with your students: 

As part of Transfer Week, the Honors Program is partnering with Transfer Services to feature a panel of ACC Honors Program alumni who have transferred to elite institutions: Yale, Columbia, and Rutgers. Want the inside scoop on how they did it? Join us on February 13th from 6:00-7:00 pm as we discuss transfer tips, scholarships, and more.

We can accept up to 40 participants for this event at Highland Campus, and we’ll even provide dinner! Register here. Attending remotely? Zoom registration is here. For questions, contact honors@austincc.edu

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Please Promote: Coming Back From Far Away, Feb 15 

ACC's Creative Writing Department presents 

Coming Back from Far Away: Poems and Music for the Journey

Readings by Naomi Shihab Nye & Prudence Arceneaux

Accompanying Music by Darrel Mayers 

February 15, 7pm 

Highland Campus, Building 2000, Room 2560

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People's Literary Festival, Feb 22-24 in Corpus Christi, TX

Sarah K. Lenz, chair of the People's Literary Festival and assistant professor at Del Mar College, extends this invitation:

People’s Literary Festival

You are invited to the 9th Annual People’s Literary Festival in Corpus Christi, Texas on February 22-24, 2024. 

People’s Literary Festival celebrates and supports writers–both new and established–by bridging literary borders and genres. We bring writers and readers into dialogue, honor self-expression, and inspire creativity in our readings and workshops.  

This free, three-day event includes 19 literary showcase readings in fiction, memoir, and poetry, 8 creative writing workshops, and 20 book fair vendors. A total of 72 poets, writers and literary arts educators will be presenting their work. I hope you can join us!

You can find the complete schedule of the festival’s events and locations at https://peoplesliteraryfestival.com/

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Please Promote: Norton Writer's Prize, Deadline June 15

Encourage your students (age 18+) to submit their original non-fiction to Norton Writer's Prize. Here's a snippet from the call for submissions: 

"Three cash prizes of $1,000 apiece will be awarded in 2024 for coursework submitted during the academic year, one in each of the following three categories:

• Writing by a first-year student in a 2- or 4-year college or university

• Writing by a student in a 2-year college or university

• Writing by a student in a 4-year college or university

Submissions must be between 1,000 and 3,000 words in length."

Check out the official Norton Writer's Prize Call for Submissions for more details